Systems and devices for molecule sensing and method of manufacturing thereof

ABSTRACT

Embodiments of the disclosure are directed to a device for molecule sensing. In some embodiments, the device includes a first electrode separated from a second electrode by a dielectric layer. The first electrode comprises a large area electrode and the second electrode comprises a small area electrode. At least one opening (e.g., trench) cut or otherwise created into the dielectric layer exposes a tunnel junction therebetween whereby target molecules in solution can bind across the tunnel junction.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 14/051,142, filed Oct. 10, 2013, which claims the benefit under 35 USC §119(e) of U.S. provisional patent application No. 61/711,981, filed Oct. 10, 2012, the entire disclosures of which are herein incorporated by reference.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

This invention was made with government support under grant number HG006323 awarded by the National Institute of Health. The government has certain rights in this invention.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to systems, methods and devices for molecule sensing, and more particularly to systems, methods and devices for detecting target molecules, and in some embodiments, single molecule detection. Moreover, other embodiments are directed to methods of manufacture of such systems and devices.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

In a series of earlier disclosures: WO2009/117522A2, WO2010/042514A1, WO2009/117517, WO2008/124706A2, US2010/0084276A1, and US2012/0288948, each of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, a system is shown where nucleic acid bases are read using the electron tunneling current signals generated as nucleobases pass through a tunnel gap functionalized with adaptor molecules. See also Huang et al.¹ This method is referred to as “Recognition Tunneling”.²

U.S. non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 13/838,727, filed Mar. 15, 2013, is understood to disclose a readout device constructed from a planar sandwich of a Pd electrode, a layer of dielectric and a top Pd electrode, where a nano sized opening (or nanopore) is drilled by means of an electron beam. However, drilling through a sandwich of materials sometimes presents challenges. For example, sometimes such drilling may damaging the Pd electrodes, which could lead to electrical shorting.

SUMMARY OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Accordingly, it is an object of some of the embodiments of the present disclosure to provide a target molecule recognition tunneling device (e.g., single molecule detection) that, during manufacturing, damage caused by drilling a nano-sized opening (i.e., nanopore) through metal electrodes, is minimized (in some embodiments, such manufacturing eliminates the nano-sized opening altogether). It is another object of some of the embodiments of the present disclosure to provide a device that can be manufactured without one and/or another critical alignment steps for various components and processing, and therefore, easier and, in some embodiments, more economical to mass produce.

It is still another object of some of the embodiments of the present disclosure to cut, etch or otherwise create an opening to and/or through metal electrodes in a tunnel gap in a manner that minimize damage to the tunnel gap.

In some embodiments, a method for manufacturing a device for detecting one or more target molecules is provided and may comprise one or more (and in some embodiments several, and in some embodiments, all of the following steps: depositing a first bottom electrode onto a solid supporting layer wherein the first electrode including a first area, depositing a dielectric layer over the first electrode, depositing a second top electrode over the dielectric layer, wherein the second electrode includes a second area which is substantially less than the first area, and cutting, etching or otherwise creating at least one trench through at least the second electrode and the dielectric layer, such that the bottom of the trench exposes the first electrode and exposes a tunnel junction between the electrodes.

Some embodiments may comprise, and/or otherwise include (e.g., with respect to the above noted embodiments, or other embodiments disclosed herein) one and/or another of the following features and/or steps:

-   -   depositing at least one adhesion layer arranged beneath at least         one of the first and second electrodes;     -   the dielectric layer is deposited such that it covers         substantially all of the first electrode save for a contact area         for the first electrode, the contact area configured for         connection to a contact pad at the edge of the device;     -   depositing Al₂O₃ on the contact area;     -   functionalizing first molecules for forming a non-covalent bond         with the one or more target molecules on the electrodes;     -   depositing a passivating layer between about 20 nm and about 500         nm covering a substantial portion of the surface of at least one         of the electrodes;     -   depositing a passivating layer between about 20 nm and about 500         nm covering a substantial portion of device;     -   establishing at least one second opening in the passivating         layer arranged to correspond to the at least one trench;     -   the at least one trench comprises a plurality of trenches;     -   the second electrode is arranged in a “T” or cross configuration         (for example) relative to the first electrode so as to separate         one or more junctions there between;     -   the plurality of trenches comprise a first trench and a second         trench, where a longitudinal axis of the first trench is at an         angle to the longitudinal axis of the second trench, in such         embodiments, the angle may be a perpendicular angle;     -   the width of the second electrode is less than about 500 nm;     -   the width of the second electrode is less than about 100 nm;     -   the at least one trench includes a width or diameter of between         about 2.5 nm to about 3 nm;     -   the second electrode is substantially smaller than the first         electrode;     -   the at least one trench is established using reactive ions;     -   the at least one trench is established using a focused beam of         He ions; and     -   the at least one trench is established using low-energy argon         ions.

In some embodiments, a method for manufacturing a device for identifying one or more target molecules is provided which may comprise one or more of (and in some embodiments, several of, and in still some embodiments, all of): depositing a first bottom electrode onto a solid supporting layer, wherein the first electrode including a first area, depositing a dielectric layer over the first electrode, depositing a second top electrode over the dielectric layer, wherein the second electrode includes a second area which is substantially less than the first area, establishing at least one trench through at least the second electrode and the dielectric layer, such that the bottom of the trench exposes a tunnel junction between the first and second electrodes, substantially covering the device with a first passivating layer, and establishing an opening in the passivating layer adjacent the at least one trench.

Some embodiments may comprise, and/or otherwise include (e.g., with respect to the above noted embodiments, or other embodiments disclosed herein) one and/or another of the following features and/or steps:

-   -   the opening in a first passivating layer comprises ion-etching         using a mask, where the mask covers comprise at least one of Ta         and Ni, in a layer of between about 10 nm and about 500 nm,         provided over the first passivating layer;     -   depositing a second passivating layer over the mask;     -   exposing an opening in the second passivating layer is         accomplished, for example, via optical lithography to expose the         mask;     -   etching the mask to remove an area of the mask corresponding to         the opening in the second passivating layer;     -   etching is accomplished, for example, using at least one of a         nitric, acetic, and sulfuric acid, and/or a ferric chloride         solution;     -   the first passivating layer is removed, for example, using an         argon plasma or a solvent; and     -   exposing the assembly to chlorine ions to etch the second         electrode to expose the dielectric layer, and thereafter,         etching the dielectric layer by exposing the dielectric layer to         boron trichloride ions.

In some embodiments, a device for detecting one or more target molecules is provided and may comprise a first bottom electrode having a first thickness, the first electrode deposited on onto a solid supporting layer, a dielectric layer substantially covering the first electrode, a second top electrode having a second thickness, the second electrode being separated from the first electrode by the dielectric layer, where the surface area of the second electrode is less than the surface area of the first electrode, at least one trench is cut, etched or otherwise created through at least the second electrode and dielectric layer such that at least the bottom of the opening exposes the first electrode. In some embodiments, the trench is configured to expose a tunnel junction between the electrodes to facilitate communication of one or more target molecules with the first and second electrodes.

Some embodiments may comprise, and/or otherwise include (e.g., with respect to the above noted embodiments, or other embodiments disclosed herein) one and/or another of the following features:

-   -   the second electrode being substantially smaller than the first         electrode;     -   the width of the second electrode is less than about 500 nm;     -   the width of the second electrode is less than about 100 nm;     -   the second electrode comprises a wire, where the wire may         include a width of between about 5 nm and about 500 nm, a width         of between about 10 nm and about 100 nm, or a width of between         about 40 nm and about 80 nm;     -   the second electrode may be arranged in a cross or “T”         configuration relative to the first electrode so as to separate         one or more junctions therebetween;     -   at least one adhesion layer arranged beneath at least one of the         first and second electrodes;     -   the adhesion layer comprises titanium;     -   the adhesion layer includes a thickness of about 0.01 nm to         about 1 nm, or a thickness of about 0.5 nm;     -   the dielectric layer covers substantially all of the first         electrode save for a contact area for the first electrode, the         contact area configured for connection to a contact pad at the         edge of the device;     -   Al₂O₃ is deposited on the contact area, where the Al₂O₃ is         deposited in a thickness of between about 1 nm and about 5 nm,         or a thickness of about 3 nm;     -   first molecules for forming a non-covalent bond with the one or         more target molecules, where the electrodes are chemically         functionalized with the first molecules;     -   at least one of the electrodes is comprised of at least one of         palladium, gold and platinum;     -   a passivating layer between about 20 nm and about 500 nm         covering a substantial portion of the surface of the electrodes;         in such embodiments, an electrolyte may also be included, where         the passivating layer is configured to separate the electrolyte         from the surface area of the electrodes;     -   a passivating layer substantially encapsulating the device, the         layer being between about 20 nm and about 500 nm in thickness;     -   in embodiments with a passivating layer, the passivating layer         includes at least one opening arranged to correspond to the at         least one trench;     -   in embodiments with a passivating layer, the passivating layer         comprises PMMA;     -   in embodiments with at least one opening in the passivating         layer, the at least one opening includes a width between about 4         μm and about 16 μm, and a length of between about 14 μm and         about 56 μm;     -   in embodiments which include a trench, the trench includes a         length, a width and a depth, where the depth of the trench is         between about 10 nm to about 500 nm, or between about 30 nm to         about 100 nm;     -   in embodiments with a trench, the width of the trench is between         about 1 μm and about 10 μm, and wherein the length of the trench         is between about 1 μm and about 5 μm, or the width of the trench         is about 4 μm and wherein the length of the trench is about 2         μm;     -   in embodiments with a trench, the trench includes a         substantially rectangular shape;     -   in embodiments with a trench, a length of the trench is greater         than a width of the trench;     -   in embodiments with a trench, the at least one trench may         comprise a plurality of trenches, and in such embodiments, the         plurality of trenches include a length and a width with the         length being greater than the width;     -   in embodiments with a plurality of trenches, the plurality of         trenches are each configured with a rectangular shape;     -   in embodiments with a plurality of trenches, the plurality of         trenches comprise a first trench and a second trench, where a         longitudinal axis of the first trench is at an angle to the         longitudinal axis of the second trench, and such angle may         comprise a perpendicular angle; and     -   in embodiments with at least one trench, the at least one trench         includes a width or diameter of between about 2.5 nm to about 3         nm.

In some embodiments, a method for identifying one or more target molecules is provided, and may comprise one or more of (and in some embodiments, several of, and in some embodiments, all of) the following steps: providing a device according to any of the disclosed embodiments, functionalizing at least a portion of at least one of the electrodes with first molecules, the first molecules configured for forming non-covalent bonds with one or more target molecules, flowing a solution containing one or more target molecules past the electrodes, and detecting the one or more target molecules upon the one or more target molecules forming a non-covalent bond with the first molecules.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIGS. 1A-1B illustrates a plan view (FIG. 1A) and a cross section (FIG. 1B) of a device according to some of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 2A-2D illustrate scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of a device layout prior to channels or trenches (these terms being used interchangeably throughout) being made according to some embodiments of the present disclosure:

FIG. 2A scale bar corresponding to 500 microns;

FIG. 2B scale bar corresponding to 100 microns;

FIG. 2C scale bar corresponding to 50 microns; and

FIG. 2D scale bar corresponding to 20 microns.

FIG. 3 illustrates a tilted SEM image (scale bar corresponding to 10 microns) after cutting of channels in a device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are optical images of a device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, illustrating a fluid well in a passivating (e.g., PMMA) overlayer (trenches are visible in FIG. 4B). FIG. 4C is a schematic cross-section showing the formation of the well by removal of PMMA in the area enclosed by the black box outline in FIG. 4A.

FIG. 5 illustrates a graph of tunneling current vs. voltage, sweeping from −0.8V to +0.8V, for various electrode arrangements, gathered from a device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 illustrates a graph of current vs. time over a 45 second time period of control signals for a device according to some embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a graph of current produced in a device according to the present disclosure vs. time, after introduction of a 1 mM solution of dGMP in a 1 mM phosphate buffer.

FIGS. 8A-8B illustrate a plan view (FIG. 8A) and a cross section (8B) of a device according to some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, illustrating a manner in which a nanopore can be added adjacent a tunnel gap.

FIG. 9 illustrates processing steps (steps 1-5) to cut an opening into the tunnel junction using reactive ion etching, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a graph of chemical recognition signals obtained from a device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, having a 2 nm Al₂O₃ dielectric layer cut using a reactive ion etching process.

FIG. 11 illustrates a device with an opening according to some embodiments, the opening being fabricated using a focused He ion beam.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1 A and 1B illustrate an arrangement of a device for sensing target molecules according to some of the embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown, a designated area (typically about 50 microns by about 50 microns or greater) of electrode (10) is deposited onto a solid supporting layer, including, for example, hafnium oxide, a polymer membrane, an oxidized silicon wafer, and/or a silicon nitride layer (for example) atop a silicon wafer (or other supporting layer). In some embodiments, about 9 nm of Pd on top of about 0.5 nm Ti adhesion layer, but according to some embodiments, other noble metals such as Pt and Au may be used. In some embodiments, a dielectric layer (20) may be deposited over the bottom electrode, substantially covering it (for some embodiments, covering the bottom of the electrode entirely). However, in some embodiments, an area is left uncovered for connection to a contact pad at the edge of the device. This contact area may be, for example, a 1 to 5 nm (with 2 nm preferred in some embodiments) layer of Al₂O₃ fabricated using atomic layer deposition (for example).

In some embodiments, a top electrode (30) may then be deposited over the dielectric layer. In some embodiments, this may also be about a 9 nm evaporated layer of Pd on top of about a 0.5 nm Ti adhesion layer. The second electrode may be made much smaller, relatively, than the lower, first electrode, for example, a wire of between about 10 and about 100 nm in width (in some embodiments, this may be a wire of about 40 to about 80 nm). In some embodiments, such dimensions allows minimization of background, direct tunneling through the dielectric, and may also minimize the probability of encountering a pinhole in the dielectric.

In some embodiments, in order to gain access to a tunnel junction between the electrodes for target molecules (e.g., analyte) in solution, a trench (40) may be cut through portions of the device (and in some embodiments, the entire device). Such a trench may be made with a focused ion beam, or FIB, (for example), though reactive ion etching may also be used. In some embodiments, the depth of the trench may be between about 30 to about 100 nm. An advantage of some of such embodiments is that the trench need only intersect the top wire and dielectric, exposing the bottom electrode at some point for a junction to be made/accessible. Thus, according to such embodiments, critical alignment may not be required.

FIG. 2A shows an SEM image of a device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Here, the top electrode has been arranged in a “t” formation to allow for separate tunnel junctions (e.g., three) to be made on each device (a simple line electrode is shown in FIG. 1 for clarity). Each electrode runs to a respective pad (e.g., 31, 36 in FIG. 2 connect to the narrow top electrodes, 11 connects to the large bottom electrode). FIG. 2B shows an area where Al₂O₃ is deposited (by the dashed box) according to some embodiments. The third wire (forming the t) is labeled 35. FIG. 2C shows the device at increased magnification so that the top “t” is visible. FIG. 2D shows the top electrode at yet higher magnification, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 3 shows an SEM image of a device after drilling of trenches (52 and 51) by FIB according to some embodiments. For example, each trench is about 4 microns wide in a dimension perpendicular to the wire and about 2 microns long in the dimension parallel to the wire length (these dimensions are distorted by the tilting required to form an image in the FIB). Trench 52 is about 40 nm in depth and trench 51 is about 80 nm in depth. These dimensions are for example purposes only, as such trenches may be larger or smaller (and may be significantly larger or smaller), as well as shallower or deeper, so long as the top and bottom electrodes are exposed (according to some embodiments).

FIG. 4 illustrates exemplary embodiments of a device configured for fluid measurements. In such embodiments, a passivating layer of Poly(methyl methacrylate), or PMMA, is formed over substantially the entire device (for example). The layer may be between about 20 nm and about 500 nm in thickness, though in some embodiments, the layer is about 100 nm. Openings or windows (such terms used interchangeably throughout) may then be made lithographically (for example) for the external contacts. A small opening (60) may be made over the two trenches. In some embodiments, the opening may be about 8 microns by about 28 microns (note, in some embodiments, only a few square microns of electrode exposed to the electrolyte provides necessary functionality). FIG. 4C illustrates a cross section through the device with the well in place (according to some embodiments).

In some embodiments, tunnel currents through the dielectric layer may be notably small when 80 micron wide wires are utilized (for example, several picoamps at 0.8V). FIG. 5 illustrates current vs. voltage plots for the three junctions on a chip after trenches are cut, according to some embodiments, and also correspond to several picoamps at 0.8V. In contrast, the current through a wire (electrodes B and D) before cutting of trenches may provide a signal that the wire is continuous. It is worth noting that hysteresis of about 20 pA is an artifact of the data collection system. The actual tunnel current is about 5 pA at 0.8V (between top and bottom electrodes, AB, AC and AD with the electrode labels as shown in the image in the center). The current between B and D shows the continuity of this wire prior to cutting of the trench.

In some embodiments, the electrodes may be functionalized with 4(5)-(2-mercaptoethyl)-1H imideazole-2-carboxamide. This may be accomplished, according to some embodiments, by soaking the devices in a 0.5 mM solution of the molecule in ethanol for 24 h (for example). After treatment, tests on devices with a 1 mM phosphate buffer solution (pH=7.0) yield the current vs. time graph illustrated in FIG. 6. Using a faster amplifier, so that more noise is evident (20 pA peak to peak), results in features which can be recorded on a ms timescale. For this example, the bias is 0.4V and the average background current is less than 5 pA.

In some embodiments, when a 1 mM solution of deoxyguanosine monophosphate (in 1 mM phosphate buffer) is placed in the well, the background current increases in a substantial manner (to 2.6 nA). Superimposed on this current may be three-level switching behavior (to 3.4 and 3.9 nA) characteristic of signals from just one or two molecules as illustrated in FIG. 7. In FIG. 7, current scale is pA and lines provide three levels of signal (in nA); no signals are seen when the electrodes lack the imideazole-2-carboxamide functionalization. When the junction is rinsed with clean phosphate buffer (i.e., no analyte), the current returns to just a few pA (with no evidence of the telegraph noise). Thus, in some embodiments, the signal may be generated by the target molecule/analyte and single molecules may be detected. In another control experiment, 1 mM dGMP was added to a device that lacked the imideazole-2-carboxamide reader molecules, and no spikes were observed. After funtionalizing the device with imideazole-2-carboxamide, signals corresponding to those in FIG. 7 were observed. Thus, according to some embodiments, the functionalization of the reading electrodes enables recordation of single molecule signals with such a large (2.5 to 3 nm) tunnel gap.

In order to make sequential reads of the composition of a polymer, such as (for example) the base sequence of DNA or an amino acid sequence of a protein (or the sugar sequence of a polysaccharide), the molecule may be passed through a nano sized opening (nanopore) adjacent to the electrodes. An exemplary configuration for accomplishing this is shown in FIG. 8. In some embodiments, and in this case illustrated in FIG. 8, the depth of the trench (40) may be made about equal to the sum of one or both electrode thicknesses plus the thickness of the dielectric (for example), which eliminates the need to drill a pore through the electrode material. Thus, a nanopore (100) may be drilled immediately adjacent to the edge of one of the electrode pairs, through the underlying substrate by means of, for example, a focused electron beam as is well known in the art. According to such embodiments, one alignment step may be all that is required for a device (the drilling of the nanopore may be carried out using a transmission electron microscope, TEM or scanning transmission electron microscope, STEM, and the like) and damage to the electrodes may be avoided.

In some embodiments, the cutting of an electrode gap using a Ga beam FIB may include a disadvantage in that considerable energy is transferred into the tunnel junction by the heavy Ga ions, which may cause damage to one and/or another of the metal electrodes. Furthermore, implantation of Ga ions in the region of the junction, in some instances, may lead to unpredictable electrical characteristics for the device. For these reasons, devices based on cuts with a Ga FIB may provide low yields. To that end, in some embodiments, the dielectric layer (e.g., Al₂O₃) may be made thicker than required such that damaged devices in which the electrodes are brought closer together can operate. In some instances, a consequence of this may be that the signals (see FIG. 7), while characteristic of the analyte, are difficult to understand since the junction geometry may not be well controlled.

FIG. 9 illustrates a device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, where the electrode arrangement may be cut into (e.g., to establish one or more trenches) using a technique of reactive ion etching, for example. Referring to panel 1 of FIG. 9, the electrode/dielectric arrangement/stack (10, 20, 30) may be covered with a protective layer of PMMA, of a thickness of about 100 nm to about 1000 nm (200). A mask that resists the ions used to etch the junction materials may be formed on top of this PMMA layer, and may be of Ta or Ni, for example. In some embodiments, a layer of about 10 nm to about 500 nm of Ni (201) is deposited on top of the PMMA layer using, for example, e-beam evaporation. In some embodiments, a focused ion beam can be used to make an opening into the Ni or Ta window, stopping before the Ga beam damages the tunnel junction.

In some embodiments, the Ni (or Ta) layer may be covered with PMMA (202) and optical lithography may be used to expose an opening or window in the PMMA (203), as shown in panel 1 of FIG. 9 for a positive resist, though a negative resist can be used with the appropriate mask. After opening of the PMMA opening/window, a nickel etch may then be used to remove the nickel film in the desired region (204). This etch can be, for example, a nitric/acetic/sulfuric acid mix or a ferric chloride solution. The underlying PMMA may then be removed (see, 205 in panel 3, FIG. 9) using, for example, an argon plasma or a short exposure to solvent, thereby exposing the tunnel junction structure (10, 20, 30) below.

In some embodiments, the assembly may then be placed in a reactive ion etcher (RIE). For example, it may be first exposed to chlorine ions which etch the top palladium electrode (see (206) of Panel 4 of FIG. 9). The assembly may then be exposed to boron trichloride ions which can be used to etch the Al₂O₃ dielectric layer (see (207) of Panel 5 of FIG. 9).

Using this technique, cuts may be made reliably into devices with, for example, a 2 nm (or thereabout) Al₂O₃ layer, which corresponds to significant improvement on etching using the Ga FIB where the starting thickness of the dielectric may be required to be thicker than 2 nm (e.g., between about 3 to about 5 nm). FIG. 10 is a graph illustrating typical signals obtained from such a device (according to some embodiments) in which the junction is cut using reactive ion etching. In some embodiments, in the absence of an analyte, or in the presence of analyte, but absence of chemical functionalization of the electrodes, the tunneling signal with electrolyte in the tunnel junction remains near 0 pA (“control” in panel 1 of FIG. 10). When adenosinemonophosphate (“dAMP”) is added to the electrolyte solution, current peaks are observed (panel 2). The current returns again to near zero when the junction is rinsed with clean electrolyte (panel 3). When guanosinemonophosphate (“dGMP”) is added (panel 4), current peaks return. One of skill in the art will note that the magnitude of the current peaks is bigger for dGMP than for dAMP, evidencing chemical discrimination. These signals are different from those generated by the Ga FIB cut junctions (FIG. 7). Such signals are much more like signals produced by a STM, giving evidence that the junction produced by reactive ion etching may be simpler than the junction produced by Ga FIB milling.

In some embodiments, a possible disadvantage of RIE may be that the size of the cut through the junction may be limited by the lithography used to cut the Ni or Ta mask. An alternative to Ga ion FIB is to use He ion FIB. The He ion FIB generally does not cause the electronic modifications produced by Ga ions (when they implant into the sample). He ions also deposit less energy into the target (because of their smaller mass) and are thus less destructive. FIG. 11 shows an opening/nanopore (301) of about 20 nm diameter (the scale bar corresponds to 50 nm) drilled into a device (302) on a 50 nm thick silicon nitride membrane. This device was made with 10 s exposure to a tightly focused 25 keV beam of He ions. Similar devices, according to some embodiments, have been successfully drilled and produced signals characteristic of analytes placed into the junction.

In some embodiments, low-energy (e.g., 60 eV) argon ions may be used. The speed of etching using the low-energy argon ions is such that a hard mask is not needed. To protect the tunnel junctions from the ions, a PMMA resist of about 600 to about 800 nm thickness may be used. For example, a Kauffman gridded ion source was operated at a beam current of 15 to 20 mA with an accelerating voltage of 60V. Molecule detection devices according to some embodiments which were exposed to the beam for times that varied between about 5 and 15 minutes produced chemical tunnel signals corresponding to those shown in FIG. 10.

Any and all references to publications or other documents, including but not limited to, patents, patent applications, articles, webpages, books, etc., presented in the present application, are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety.

Example embodiments of devices, systems, and methods have been described herein. As noted elsewhere, these embodiments have been described for illustrative purposes only and are not limiting. Other embodiments are possible and are covered by the disclosure, which will be apparent from the teachings contained herein. Thus, the breadth and scope of the disclosure should not be limited by any of the above-described embodiments but should be defined only in accordance with claims supported by the present disclosure and their equivalents. Moreover, embodiments of the subject disclosure may include methods, systems and devices, which may further include any and all elements from any other disclosed methods, systems, and devices. In other words, elements from one and/or another disclosed embodiments may be interchangeable with elements from other disclosed embodiments. In addition, one or more features/elements of disclosed embodiments may be removed and still result in patentable subject matter (and thus, resulting in yet more embodiments of the subject disclosure).

CITATIONS

-   1. HUANG, S., J. HE, S. CHANG, P. ZHANG, F. LIANG, S. LI, M.     TUCHBAND, A. FUHRMAN, R. ROS, AND S. M. LINDSAY, IDENTIFYING SINGLE     BASES IN A DNA OLIGOMER WITH ELECTRON TUNNELING. NATURE     NANOTECHNOLOGY, 2010. 5: P. 868-73. -   2. LINDSAY, S., J. HE, O. SANKEY, P. HAPALA, P. JELINEK, P.     ZHANG, S. CHANG, AND S. HUANG, RECOGNITION TUNNELING.     NANOTECHNOLOGY, 2010. 21: P. 262001-262013. 

1-39. (canceled)
 40. A device for detecting one or more target molecules comprising: a first electrode having a first thickness; a dielectric layer covering the first electrode; a second electrode having a second thickness, the second electrode being separated from the first electrode by the dielectric layer, wherein the surface area of the second electrode is less than the surface area of the first electrode; and at least one trench cut or etched through at least the second electrode and dielectric layer and configured to expose a junction between the electrodes to facilitate connection of one or more target molecules with the first and second electrodes.
 41. The device according to claim 40, wherein the second electrode comprises a wire.
 42. The device according to claim 40, further comprising at least one adhesion layer arranged beneath at least one of the first and second electrodes.
 43. The device according to claim 40, wherein the dielectric layer covers substantially all of the first electrode save for a contact area for the first electrode, the contact area configured for connection to a contact pad at the edge of the device.
 44. The device of claim 40, further comprising first molecules for forming a non-covalent bond with the one or more target molecules, wherein the electrodes are chemically functionalized with the first molecules.
 45. The device of claim 40, further comprising a passivating layer between about 20 nm and about 500 nm in thickness covering a substantial portion of the surface of the electrodes.
 46. The device of claim 40, further comprising a passivating layer substantially encapsulating the device, the layer being between about 20 nm and about 500 nm in thickness.
 47. The device according to claim 40, wherein the at least one trench includes a plurality of trenches.
 48. The device of claim 40, wherein the second electrode is arranged in a cross or “T” configuration relative to the first electrode so as to separate one or more junctions therebetween.
 49. The device of claim 40, wherein the at least one trench has a width or diameter of between about 2.5 nm to about 3 nm.
 50. A device for detecting one or more target molecules comprising: a first electrode, the first electrode deposited on a supporting layer; a dielectric layer covering the first electrode; a second electrode separated from the first electrode by the dielectric layer, wherein the surface area of the second electrode is less than the surface area of the first electrode; and at least one trench cut or etched through at least the second electrode and dielectric layer and configured to expose a junction between the electrodes to facilitate connection of one or more target molecules with the first and second electrodes. 